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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28201089">GatheringFiKi2020</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaucyWench/pseuds/SaucyWench'>SaucyWench</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Being Human (UK), The Almighty Johnsons</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 23:29:32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,229</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28201089</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaucyWench/pseuds/SaucyWench</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A prompt I wrote for the GatheringFiKi 12 Days of Christmas 2020 event!</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Anders Johnson/John Mitchell</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>GatheringFiKi - 12 Days Of Christmas 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>GatheringFiKi2020</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Travelling as a vampire had always been difficult. When Mitchell was a fledgling it was the same difficulty anyone had, human or vampire. Cars were just starting to become popular and sharing the roads with horses could be hazardous. Travelling to other countries by ship was usually safe, but there was always the danger of being discovered as something other than human. If he was completely honest with himself, for decades Mitchell was more concerned with where his next blood fix was coming from than playing tourist. By the time he sobered up and quit drinking, cameras and security checkpoints were everywhere. It had taken every dime he had, every favor he was owed, and the promise of favors in return just to make his way to New Zealand. It was a stressful ordeal, and he never wanted to have to experience it again.</p>
<p>Travelling with Anders was something entirely different.</p>
<p>First there was a flurry of letters from Norway. It wasn’t anything unusual. Anders had personal and professional contacts there. Most of them preferred emails, but some of the older people liked the handwritten touch. </p>
<p>Next, Anders had come home and thrown a bag at Mitchell. When Mitchell opened it, he found a thick, gray scarf and matching gloves. He blinked at them in confusion, since it was a sunny, balmy day. “What are these for?”</p>
<p>Anders grinned and rocked forward on his toes. “We’re going on an adventure. Start packing.”</p>
<p>Mitchell’s thoughts whirled. He had a job. One of his coworkers was having a bridal shower this weekend. He had plans to help Ty with a recipe tomorrow. But with Anders standing there, smiling at him with that devil-may-care look in his eye, there was only one answer he wanted to give. He nodded and said, “Yeah, okay. When are we leaving?”</p>
<p>Which was how a vampire in the modern era found himself landing at an airport in in Oslo, the capital of Norway, watching as his boyfriend, the human vessel of the Norse god Bragi, assured the security guards that there was nothing unusual about Mitchell not showing up on the cameras. Just thinking about that made his head hurt, trying to figure out how this had become his life. He wouldn’t change a second of it, but it was still just amazing in the best sense of the word.  </p>
<p>Anders turned to Mitchell and winked and his eyes flashed gold, like a cat’s eyes at night caught in a flashlight. They did that sometimes when Bragi was close to the surface, or Anders had been leaning on the god’s powers too much. It was just a quick glimpse, then Anders’ eyes were back to their usual beautiful blue.  Anders had been using Bragi a lot, first to get Mitchell on the plane, then to convince the flight attendant to let them buy an extra drink, and now to get them out of the airport and into a cab.</p>
<p>The cab driver asked their destination in English but lit up when Anders answered him in a language Mitchell didn’t understand.  He assumed it was Norwegian, but there was no telling.  Anders was smart already but combined with Bragi’s power he could speak any language in the world.  Mitchell hadn’t asked, but he would not be surprised to learn that Anders could speak dead languages, too.</p>
<p>The driver and Anders chatted but Mitchell was content to watch out the window as they drove through the city.  It was beautiful here, with the canals and shops lining the narrow streets. The layer of snow was fresh and white, giving everything the air of being out of a holiday movie.</p>
<p>The sensation of being in a movie continued when they got dropped off at the train station. They passed by the new bullet trains, with their sleek noses and quiet magnets, and boarded a locomotive with a cheery red plow attached to the front. Mitchell wouldn’t have been surprised to see someone pushing a trolley, trying to sell pumpkin juice or chocolate frogs.</p>
<p>Once they got settled, Mitchell asked, “Where did you say we were going, again?”</p>
<p>“We’ll be there soon. Relax,’ Anders answered before pulling out his phone and sending a text.</p>
<p>Mitchell sighed, but didn’t badger him. Instead he watched out the window and enjoyed the ride.</p>
<p>The train was slow through town, giving Mitchell the chance to look around more. Once they got out of the city limits, they started picking up speed. Mitchell was sitting far enough back that when the train rounded a curve, he could watch the plow throwing snow up in a wave when they hit a drift.</p>
<p>After a while the train slowed down, and Anders tucked his phone away. He said, “Someone is meeting us at the station.”</p>
<p>After disembarking with luggage in tow, Anders led the way through the station and out the other side, straight to a horse drawn carriage festooned with fairy lights and glittery stars.  Before Mitchell knew it, he was tucked under a thick blanket with a hot water bottle by his feet, clutching a travel mug of hot chocolate laced with whiskey, watching as they rolled by the mirror perfect surface of a lake.</p>
<p>“Anders, seriously, what is all this?”</p>
<p>After taking a sip of his own mug, Anders shrugged. “You’re always saying you miss the cold weather during the holidays. We’re never going to have a white Christmas, so I thought we could go to the snow.”</p>
<p>Mitchell gave Anders a look from the corner of his eye.  “You hate Christmas.”</p>
<p>“True.” Anders looked down, twisting the mug around between his hands. “But you don’t. You love it. I just thought you’d enjoy this, too.”</p>
<p>Mitchell covered one of Anders’ hands with his own to stop the nervous fidgeting. “I do. I love it. It’s beautiful.”</p>
<p>Anders’ cheeks pinkened, but he gave Mitchell a pleased smile.</p>
<p>They pulled up in front of a beautiful old ski lodge. Like the carriage, it was decorated with lights, stars, garlands, and holly. The cabins scattered around were all decorated too, and it looked like the little holiday villages people set up around their Christmas trees. A bellboy came and got their bags while Anders helped Mitchell out of the carriage. Mitchell took a deep breath, smelling the snow in the crisp air, as he looked around.</p>
<p>“I admit, I have an ulterior motive bringing you here,” Anders said.</p>
<p>Mitchell turned to him. Anders was holding a snowball and started to move. Mitchell braced, expecting a cold, wet smack in the face, but blinked when Anders went down on one knee.</p>
<p>“I had a plan. A romantic dinner, then a walk by the lake under the stars. We both know that’s not really me, though. Want to get married? We can still have the dinner, but naked in our cabin.” He held out his palm, cradling a ring tucked into a heart made of snow.</p>
<p>Mitchell was dumbfounded. Out of everything he expected from Anders, a marriage proposal was not one of them.</p>
<p>Anders grinned up at him. “So, what do you say?”</p>
<p>Mitchell studied Anders. Anders’ grin softened into a fond smile, and Mitchell felt an answering smile on his face. With Anders staring up at him like that, with that familiar twinkle in his eyes, there was only one thing Mitchell wanted to say.</p>
<p>“Yes.”</p>
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